A decadent feast in Lambeth, south London, back in 1531, set the scene for what's been dubbed one of history's most chilling executions - death by being boiled alive.

The swanky soiree took a sinister turn when guests began to suffer violent sickness. Suspicion was swift to fall on the cook, Richard Roose, who stood accused of lacing the food with a mysterious powder.

King Henry VIII handed down a death sentence to Roose for his alleged act of poisoning. His end, however, would be unprecedented as he became the first person in Britain to endure a public execution by boiling.

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Although the finer details of the execution are scarce, historical records indicate that Roose was fastened to a gibbet, akin to a gallows, before being plunged repeatedly into a scalding cauldron. Witnesses claimed he "roared mighty loud" and met his end after a torturous two hours.

The method of death by boiling was intentionally designed to be prolonged and excruciating, ensuring maximum pain from the burns inflicted, reports .

Burns from heat occur when skin cells are destroyed, but it's believed that it's not the burns themselves that are fatal, rather the body's shock response to severe injury that leads to death.

Thermal burns destroy skin or other tissue cells, and the resultant state of shock, marked by inadequate oxygen supply to the body, poses a critical threat to life.

The warns that if you notice someone with a pale face, cold or clammy skin, racing heartbeat, speedy but shallow breaths, or if they’ve blacked out, they could very well be experiencing shock.

Nasty burns might shrink your soft bits, ripping your skin and shrivelling your fat and muscle. And when you get burned badly enough, the muscles can tense up so much it forces your joints to bend.

Studies have found that too much heat can knock out your lungs by directly damaging your air passages – and this is serious business that can kill you. It's actually one of the top reasons why people who've been seriously burned up end up dying, especially if they've breathed in loads of smoke.

Rumour has it Richard Roose suffered massive blistering from his burns, though we’re not sure if he was dunked in water, oil, or wax – the history books aren’t clear.

Harsh as it sounds, there are old tales about other poor souls who met their end after being chucked into something cool that was slowly brought to the boil – talk about a torturous way to draw out the agony and up the ante on pain.

A video on dives into this grim part of history, leaving viewers completely shook. One appalled spectator labelled it the most ghastly execution ever.

While another was left speechless by the sheer cruelty inflicted by humans: "It's hard to fathom the brutality these people inflicted on one another. We are the cruellest of all living species."

And another said, “Even if guilty this punishment is beyond evil."

This form of execution was so savage that it was subsequently banned by Edward VI in 1547. Yet, accidental fatalities due to boiling can still happen in the present day.

Take for example, a heartbreaking incident in 2016 when a 23 year old tragically lost his life after falling into a hot spring at Yellowstone National Park in the US. His body was discovered in water reportedly boiling at a temperature of 100°C (212°F).

According to the World Health Organisation, an estimated 180,000 deaths each year are attributed to burn injuries. In a shocking event in 2019, two Russians met a gruesome end when they were boiled alive after their vehicle plunged into a sinkhole filled with scorching water, failing to avoid it at the last moment.